Shasta Supervisors will send offer to Avelo in effort to keep Redding flights to Burbank

The Shasta County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously voted to send a letter to Avelo Airlines that offers the carrier up to $100,000 to help defray its costs at Redding Regional Airport.

The letter, addressed to Avelo CEO Andrew Levy, is meant to entice the airline to reconsider its decision to leave Redding.

The letter to Levy states in part, “Shasta County is willing to consider making contributions to offset the costs of managing ground services for either three years or up to $100,000, whichever is reached first.”

Avelo has said it will stop serving Redding with flights to Hollywood-Burbank on Aug. 26 because the ground handler it contracts with, Trego Dugan, is leaving Redding.

Brennan Bailey, a lead agent for Trego Dugan in Redding, suggested to the Record Searchlight after the meeting that the $100,000 could also go toward helping the company he is forming with Jared Culver, Trego Dugan’s general manager in Redding, a limited liability corporation that Bailey said wants to take over the Trego Dugan contract with Avelo.

They have yet to form the LLC and the company doesn’t have a name, Bailey said. He also couldn't say when the company would be ready to do business.

Brennan said Avelo reached out to the city when it learned Trego Dugan was leaving, but the city did not return the calls.

Trego Dugan has declined to comment on its decision to leave Redding and has referred questions to Avelo Airlines.

More: Avelo Airlines to cut service from Redding to popular Southern California destination

Redding Assistant City Manager Steve Bade did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment. He has said the city did everything it could to keep Avelo in Redding, but it came down to a business decision for the airline.

“Jared and I started brainstorming, thinking about what we can do, and so we reached out to Supervisor (Chris) Kelstrom, who we have a standing relationship with. He said, ‘Well, the county’s been trying to get their foot in the door for a while. So what if we put a motion on the floor to either help support your own ground handling company or entice Avelo to come back and give them enough money to take you guys on as their own agents,’” Brennan said.

Also on Tuesday, supervisors unanimously voted to send a letter to Redding Mayor Tenessa Audette and the City Council that asks them to consider forming a joint powers authority (JPA) with the county to oversee the operation and development of Redding Regional Airport.

Both letters approved at Tuesday’s meeting were sponsored by Kelstrom, who has voiced his disappointment since Avelo announced in late June that it was leaving Redding.

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Kelstrom said he has been talking to former Redding Airports Manager Jim Wadleigh, Culver and Brennan since he heard the news. He also said he had lunch with Redding Mayor Audette to talk about the airport.

“I just want to do everything in our power” to keep Avelo in Redding, Kelstrom said during the meeting. Avelo flies twin-engine 737s from Redding to Burbank three times a week.

Wadleigh told the Record Searchlight that Avelo owns the equipment needed to do ground operations. “So Avelo literally has everything except the bodies on the ground,” he said.

In all likelihood, Avelo will stop serving Redding on Aug. 26. But Wadleigh said the letter and offer from the county could certainly help bring the low-cost carrier back to Redding at a future date.

Meanwhile, the county's proposal for an airport joint operating agreement appears to have gain momentum with the Avelo news.

Kelstrom has said “that the ball was dropped” with Avelo. At Tuesday’s meeting, Supervisor Kevin Crye, who chairs the board, echoed Kelstrom when he called it “a total fumble of the airport situation.”

Wadleigh told supervisors that a JPA to operate the airport would benefit the community.

After the meeting, Wadleigh told the Record Searchlight that the city and county need to work together, and a joint operating agreement at the airport would be a great start.

“We need to have some cohesion because there’s some common objectives, and we all stand to lose when the airport doesn’t do very well,” Wadleigh said.

“I can tell you with Avelo backing out, other airlines are going to see this. It is a setback in my opinion for more air service development and we need to be showing the airlines our response to this situation. They’re (airlines) watching that too, I want to emphasize that,” Wadleigh added.

David Benda covers business, development and anything else that comes up for the USA TODAY Network in Redding. He also writes the weekly "Buzz on the Street" column. He’s part of a team of dedicated reporters that investigate wrongdoing, cover breaking news and tell other stories about your community. Reach him on X, formerly Twitter @DavidBenda_RS or by phone at 530-338-8323. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Supervisors approve letter offering Avelo up to $100,000 in assistance